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Help[Opinions] “Cultural appropriation”
in reply to a message by Aine
I don’t really believe in cultural appropriation. It’s kind of ridiculous to insist that people stick only to things from their own culture. And honestly, English names are really popular among certain African groups right now. If that isn’t “appropriation,” then neither is a non-African person using an African name.
This message was edited 12/9/2017, 9:05 PM
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"If you push THIS button, absolutely nobody gets electrocuted and everybody goes about their day like normal. If you push THIS button, most people will be fine, but a percentage of the population will be electrocuted. It will take exactly the same amount of effort to push each button. Okay, now choose."
This is how I feel about "cultural appropriation". Why on Earth would anybody choose that route? There are so many names out there that offend nobody. Nobody at all! I feel the same way about the "Merry Christmas" argument. You have options that take literally zero extra effort, mean the same thing, and don't hurt anybody's feelings.
That being said, we don't know the person in the original story. She or her husband may have ties to Zimbabwe that we don't know about.
This is how I feel about "cultural appropriation". Why on Earth would anybody choose that route? There are so many names out there that offend nobody. Nobody at all! I feel the same way about the "Merry Christmas" argument. You have options that take literally zero extra effort, mean the same thing, and don't hurt anybody's feelings.
That being said, we don't know the person in the original story. She or her husband may have ties to Zimbabwe that we don't know about.
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That makes sense. I didn’t think about it that way.
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Cultural appropriation:
Denigrating or degrading a culture, then using its traditions because they are cool.
IE
People rolling their eyes when a black person uses an African name or referring to it as "creative" or "made up" but applauding a white woman for doing so.
Denigrating or degrading a culture, then using its traditions because they are cool.
IE
People rolling their eyes when a black person uses an African name or referring to it as "creative" or "made up" but applauding a white woman for doing so.
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I am African-American. I don’t judge other black people for using African or even invented names. There’s no double standard from me.
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I agree with you.
You can have a personal taste about names but nobody would be able to decide why you choose a name. And what you said about these trends are very bad.
You can have a personal taste about names but nobody would be able to decide why you choose a name. And what you said about these trends are very bad.
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Wait.
Wait, wait, wait - did you just accuse native Africans of "appropriating" names from those countries' colonial language? As in, the language it would be more advantageous for an inhabitant to speak, because they were colonized?
Please tell me you're joking.
Wait, wait, wait - did you just accuse native Africans of "appropriating" names from those countries' colonial language? As in, the language it would be more advantageous for an inhabitant to speak, because they were colonized?
Please tell me you're joking.
This message was edited 12/10/2017, 12:25 PM
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These countries haven’t been colonized for 40-70 years. There is no advantage for assimilating to the colonizer in 2017.
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Agreed.
I agree with you.
Honestly, this woman went through more than any 24 year old should ever ever ever go through and didn't just survive through 200 surgeries but she also found meaning out of it (not that people are required to do so). She's overcome a huge amount to have this child and she also overcomes a lot every single day to deal with the disfigurement and ongoing medical needs of her condition. So I was more interested in the name rather than the cultural appropriation that doesn't seem as pronounced as when a normal privileged white person just chooses a meaning that they "love". I don't know if that makes sense?
I agree with you.
Honestly, this woman went through more than any 24 year old should ever ever ever go through and didn't just survive through 200 surgeries but she also found meaning out of it (not that people are required to do so). She's overcome a huge amount to have this child and she also overcomes a lot every single day to deal with the disfigurement and ongoing medical needs of her condition. So I was more interested in the name rather than the cultural appropriation that doesn't seem as pronounced as when a normal privileged white person just chooses a meaning that they "love". I don't know if that makes sense?
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This seems like you're just trying to start something. Please don't.
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I was just responding to a politicized post with my own opinion. I didn’t bring it up.
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Do you believe in any kind of hierarchical cultural dynamics? IE that in a given culture, some races have an advantage over others?
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